This rare little beast, made by Paul Weyersberg of Solingen (marked at the forte), has hard rubber grips with white metal rivets and the initials 'R.F.V.' (for Reichsfinanzverwaltung) stamped on the crossguard. These were carried by the Zollschutz, German border customs officials. It is based on the old KS98 of the imperial era.

Of the whole KS98 series, both imperial and Third Reich, this has to be one of the scarcest to find. Only four manufacturers (Alex Coppel, Carl Eickhorn, Paul Weyersberg, Horster) were involved in the contract and I doubt whether more than a few thousand were made in total.

The scabbard has some bruising and the odd patch of minor pitting on the reverse of the scabbard, some 8cm up from the point. The iron hilt mounts are somewhat patinated. The blade (26.3cm long) appears to have much of its original polish, with two small marks down near the point from the impact of the internal scabbard springs over the years.

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